The Sumner Association of Neighbors (SAN) Winter 2015 newsletter and yearly calendar is off the press, online and at your door. The newsletters are hand delivered by faithful neighbor volunteers. If you haven’t received yours, you can download it here, or pick up a copy at the CNN office (4415 NE 87th Ave, behind the fire station).

Tuesday’s meeting will welcome in new SAN board members. After a fast and fun vote, neighbors will share news and concerns. You will learn of the city’s specific plans for our neighborhood — sidewalks, bike lanes, crosswalks and more.

Our neighborhood police officer will be on hand to provide information about crime in our area, offer tips and answer specific questions.

Join in and share, or just sit back enjoy a treat and learn more about your neighborhood.

CNN Office4415 NE 87th Ave(behind the fire station)

7:00pm / social time and refreshments at 6:30pm

Sumner Neighbors, one and all, are invited to ourAnnual Holiday GalathisTuesday, Dec. 2nd!

Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2014, 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m.

CNN, 4415 NE 87th Ave (at the fire station)

Food, hot and cold drinks, and general festivities

Enjoy a feast of hot dishes from nearby restaurants, treats and beverages. Neighbors are invited to bring a potluck dish as well, so who knows what delights we’ll share?!

This is a great evening to meet your neighbors or just quietly relax, and fill your jolly belly in a friendly room. Young volunteers serve treats, laughs and stories are exchanged, familiar faces and fresh faces gather.

From Forest Park to Pioneer Courthouse Square, and in neighborhoods across the city, Portland has a great park system. But with $365 million in necessary major maintenance needs over the 10 years, we need to make a smart investment now to keep our parks safe and open.

It’s time to fix our parks. That’s why SAN is supporting the Portland Parks Replacement Bond, Measure 26-159, on November 4.

As Portland’s last parks bond—passed in 1994—is paid off in 2015, we have the opportunity to address critical park needs without increasing tax rates from what they are today. We can raise up to $68 million to address the most critical needs of our parks system, by continuing to fund parks at the same tax rate as the expiring bond (approximately $0.0877 per $1,000 of assessed value). Over the last century, Portland has created and maintained our park system through bond measures and levies like this one.

If Portland voters approve Measure 26-159, funding would go toward Portland’s most urgent park needs—like replacing failing playgrounds and other safety and accessibility improvements. Measure 26-159 requires a citizen oversight panel and audits, to ensure the funds are well spent.

If the measure does not pass, the annual property taxes paid by the typical household with an assessed value of $152,000 could decrease by about $13. But we won’t have enough parks funding, which will mean more closures like the ones that have already happened at Couch Playground and on the Maple Trail in Forest Park. Our pools and other community facilities will be at risk of emergency closure when equipment fails.

Together, we can fix our parks, and keep them safe and open for years to come. And we need your help to make it happen.

SAN has pledged to the help Fix Our Parks reach more Portlanders, by spreading the word through social networking and yard signs.

Pick up a sign from Ronda at the CNN office and put it in your yard to spread the word!
CNN office:
4415 NE 87th Ave. (behind the fire station on 87 and Sandy Blvd. off of Prescott)
503-823-3157 | rondaj@cnncoalition.org.

For more information about Measure 26-159, please visit FixOurParks.org. And please join us in voting YES on Measure 26-159 on November 4.

The summer 2014 newsletter of Sumner Association of Neighbors (SAN) in NE Portland, Oregon, is now available online!

As always a big thanks to our wonderful neighborhood volunteers who will be hand delivering the printed newsletter to your door.

This issue features information for our Annual National Night Out Barbecue:

Tuesday August 5, 2014, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.

CNN parking lot, 4415 NE 87th Ave (at the fire station)

Live music, food and cold drinks

Also in this issue is a word from a neighbor:

I also learned that today’s neighborhood associations like ours have a voice with the City of Portland and are involved now more than ever in shaping the future of Sumner and that my input IS vital to our community if I want to see improvements and changes that will benefit us all.